In 2010, <a href="http://www.sauerbruchhutton.de/">Sauerbruch Hutton</a> was named the winner of a competition to design a new building for Germany's <a href="http://www.iba-hamburg.de/en/themes-projects/central-wilhelmsburg/new-building-of-the-state-ministry-for-urban-development-and-the-environment/projekt/new-building-of-the-state-ministry-for-urban-development-and-the-environment.html">State Ministry for Urban Development and the Environment in Hamburg</a>. The design, which features rounded edges and rainbow-colored stripes, adds a much-needed burst of color to a city that is often cloudy and gray. The energy-efficient building just opened after more than two years of construction, to coincide with the <a href="http://www.iba-hamburg.de/en/presentation-year-2013.html">International Building Exhibition</a> - and it looks just as colorful as it did in the architect's renderings.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

The new state ministry building is one of the most energy-efficient buildings in Germany.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

It requires just&nbsp;70 kWh/m2, compared to a typical building from the 1970s that would have required about&nbsp;280 kWh/m2 per year to cover its energy needs.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

Beneath the entrance to the building there is an energy control center for a new local heating system run by <a href="http://www.hamburgenergie.de/">HamburgEnergie</a>, which draws heat from <a href="http://inhabitat.com/tag/geothermal/">geothermal</a> and solar thermal sources.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

About 1,000 new energy piles were buried under the foundation of the building, providing geothermal heat in the winter and cooling in the summer.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

The building consists of one 13-story high-rise that is flanked by several five-story mid-rises.

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Hamburg Environmental Ministry designed by Sauerbruch Hutton

In addition to geothermal heating, the building will take advantage of natural daylighting, highly efficient thermal insulation, and natural cross-ventilation.